Halo: Forsaken
by Horizon Unsheathed
Summary: Story revolves around an ODST and her time on Sanghelios and those she meets during her stay there. there will be lots of fighting in this. at this point in time im leaning torwards Action/romance with maybe a few extra genres. this will be a very complex story. will be Very rated M Readers opinions will be greatly accepted and if you put an idea out there i will give you credit.
1. Trials

**Ok so I feel as though i left some information about the main character that may be important so I thought it would be a good idea to post how I made the main character since I have talked to someone over PM. the first chapter is done and I am hoping for feed back before I get to work on the next chapter. I understand if some of what you read goes against Historical knowledge in the halo universe but this is mainly non cannon. Also keep in mind that six years have passed since the Human/Covenant war and some of the traditions may or may have not changed so if there is some things that may seem canonically incorrect im trying to paint sangheili warriors as more evolved and somewhat more diverse in some weapon use that was normally seen in the games for example some Elites may act differently, weapon use, and have more evolved view than most signifying the Sangheili people evolving into and actual race thats able to stand on its own after the betrayal of Truth and the brutes. BUT i will try and stay as canonically accurate as possible if it is requested of me so PLEASE COMMENT with your opinions. Thank you...**

Amanda Cruz- ODST Forward Recon

Length of service: 6 years

Rank: Sergeant

Height: 5.5

Appearance: wears a heavily modified ODST armor designed for high mobility made of lightweight materials.

Weapon proficiency: Handgun, SMG, sniper rifle/marksmen rifles, combat knives.

Skills proficiency: High reaction and reflex ability, stealth, sabotage, HVT neutralization/acquisition, expert hand to hand combat techniques.

Description: born on Luna grew up in a small community. Enlisted at 18 to pay for college but was transferred to ODST training for exceeding standard UNSC marine training regulations. Soon after graduating from ODST training was deployed to the streets of mars to quell rioting due to food shortages and refugee tensions. Deployment to mars was cut short when the city of new Mombasa on earth was attacked and was redeployed to the city outskirts to ensure a perimeter was enforced. Experienced skirmishes against mainly Jiralhanae (Brutes), Kig Yar (Jackals), Unggoy (grunts), Yanme'e (drones). Since then has been to various planets rooting out small incursions against remnant covenant forces and some terrorist Sangheili (elite) incursions.

**Trials**

My name is Amanda Cruz and my squad and I have been stationed on Sanghelios for the past three months and the weather was hot as it was virtually hostile since the arbiter allowed the humans to establish an embassy to further relations between each race. It's been roughly six years since the human/covenant war ended and tensions are still fairly high. I personally haven't had much contact against Elite forces but I've heard the stories and a lot of them were very bloody and nightmarish stuff. So my opinions on the sangheili have been biased for the most part.

As I made my patrol rounds on the perimeter of the embassy I watched the comings and goings of everyone occasionally stopping and reading ID tags of some civilians asking them questions of their destinations and reasons for visiting. But on this particular round of today's patrol I noticed a bit of buzz at the main gate so I went to investigate. "Security this is Amanda come in over?" I called in over the radio waiting for the reply back I pushed people out of the way and ran right into the chest of a silver plate armored Elite, the arbiter. I didn't even wait for a reply back from security I immediately started demanding everyone clear a path but as I was making a path I saw a glint of something out of the corner of my eye and saw a dagger going for the arbiter so I lunged at the threat kicking the arm of the hostile then bringing my fist right on the unarmored elites face that rocked him sideways. I couldn't pull my side arm on the elite because of collateral damage to the surrounding bystanders so I rushed the elite while he lunged at me, I slid under him grabbing his ankle bringing it out from under him while I was using my free hand as a spring to propel myself from the ground immediately kicking using my legs to launch myself onto the elite as he was swinging his blade at a crouched position. Unfortunately for the elite I was already on its back with my knife drawn and at its throat and my pistol drawn and pointed at on the right of his lower chest angled to one of his lungs and hearts and everyone froze. "Don't move or I kill you one of the two ways your now stuck in!" all I could hear was his breathing and a faint growl emanating from him or the crowd. "hmpf. I'm not afraid to die human do wha-"the assassin elite was cut short by the arbiter bringing his armored fist on the top of his head snapping his neck with a very audible 'crack' as the body dropped from the position it was just in as I looked at the arbiter with a stunned expression, not that he could see but still stunned.

A few hours after the incident with the Arbiter and the failed assassination attempt Sangheili planet security as well as human embassy security were frantically securing the perimeter and interviewing witnesses and other leads that could lead to who was behind all this. Although neither party expected any results we still had to make the effort to make sure nothing was passed over. Me being the first responder in the incident I was secured for debriefing and screening to see if i had seen anything but with it happening so fast it was concluded i didn't know much beyond my part in protecting the Arbiter. I was released after I was debriefed and was making my way to the barracks to check my mail and UNSC data net but was stopped by the Arbiter coming from the human ambassadors office.

"Ahhh. you must be the human who assisted in my protection yes?" saying in what had sounded like an amused and passive aggressive manner while he sized me up with his predator like eyes.

"Yes sir that would be me. Do you need further assistance Arbiter?" I had shrugged while saying it in an equally passive aggressive attitude trying not to let him intimidate me.

"No... No i do not need further assistance but you would do well not to make more enemies than you already have gained today by openly protecting me. But i digress, you have my thanks." The arbiter said bowing his head respectfully.

"I was just doing my job sir, no need to thank me. Pardon me sir but i have other duties to perform before my shift ends." I casually replied back bowing my head in return.

"My apologies if I kept you from your duties. May I have your name? I believe you didn't tell me human." The arbiter asked as i was walking away.

"That's because i never offered my name. Although I'm sure you sangheili have a hard time telling us humans apart but if you can pick me out of the crowed I will tell you then." I said while walking away to the barracks to unwind from all the weird shit i had just gone through.

Arbiter POV

As I stared at the human female walking away I was amused and yet perturbed by how easily she had disarmed and restrained the assassin. If she were a Sangheili female I would've been wary to approach her but this was not the case. Either way he would do what she had said and look out for her for the next few days till his business was concluded I was intrigued to the say the least. As I made my way to the guest area of the embassy there was a quiet chaos to the incident that had happened a few hours before, noticing more guards and technicians walking about with a stronger sense of direction. There were even a few Sangheili minors moving along to meet with their charges they were placed to guard. There was a pair of black armored humans standing outside my guest quarters and stopped to question them.

"Why are you standing outside my quarters?" I asked in an aggravated voice.

"We were ordered to stand guard you till otherwise-" I had walked passed them while huffing out of annoyance and entered my quarters without saying anything more heading straight for the bed chamber to lay down. Humans were always so trying when it came to speaking something yet meaning another.

Amanda POV

I was woken up by my commander calling me from the barracks entrance saying I was needed by the human ambassador for something. This is not out of the ordinary considering that we were normally deployed in pairs to either guard dignitaries or patrol the courtyard of the complex. When I was offered this post I had thought it meant more covenant combat but such was not the case. This was absolute hell for an ODST since there was only the occasional argument between human and sangheili personnel. With that line of thought done and over I rolled out of my bunk and started equipping my gear. My armor kit has been heavily modified using super lightweight materials giving me maximum range of motion and agility allowing me to use my skills in hand to hand more effectively. My side arm is custom designed M6D pistol made to fire rounds with extreme impact causing targets to stagger so it enables me to get close. While it's still as lethal as any other side arm it is not made for long distance shooting. My helmet has an upgraded motion tracker which allows me to know if a target is above or below me with 24.5 meter radius which gives me eighty feet early warning while in combat. It has the standard issue polarizing faceplate option as well as the helmet camera. While I was looking over my gear to see if it was in proper working order Pvt. Harrison came out of the showers and looked at me shaking his head while heading to his bunk muttering under his breath. He was always a pain in the ass but since yesterday he's been even more so because not a lot of ODST's have seen combat for months which is understandable considering none of us like patrols. Some have even gone so far as to try to fuck with my gear but I put an end to that real quick. As I was heading out Harrison called out saying something but I ignored him walking out the door heading to the ambassador's office. During my walk i overheard to blue armored sangheili talking about yesterday's incident i stopped to listen in but they looked at me with agitation.

"What do you want human? You have no business here." the one on the left had said as he spat at the ground in front of my feet.

"Actually since I was the first responder to the incident it is my business. Not to mention I didn't like how you were looking at me." I stated in a flat tone that made the right one reach out for me. I grabbed his wrist and said "do not touch me." he yanked his hand back and took a step forward entering a hostile posture as well as his partner. I dropped into a defensive stance and the three of us waited. The left Sangheili made the first move getting in front of his partner on the right so I rolled to his left clenching my armored fist and throwing a punch to his knee making him drop a little bit as I swept my leg to the unbalanced foe taking his leg out from under him stunning him for the moment but I took my attention off the other sangheili and he took the time to grab me by my helmet lifting me up a bit but ended up taking my helmet off. As soon as my feet touched the ground my eyes showing to both how serious I was they both went for their weapons but the one with my helmet was closer so i used one of my arms to grab his outstretched hand still holding onto my helmet and lifting myself up so fast it hardly registered to him until I brought my knee up connecting with the side of his face which sent him reeling into the wall while I was in the air the other sangheili I had knocked to the ground was up and charging at me with a deployed energy sword so I pulled my pistol as I hit the ground and shot his leg he was using to take a step forward. When the shot rang out and the bullet impacted his shields which it shot his leg out from under him giving me time to stand up pulling my combat knife. The minor roared in rage scrambling back up and charging me with blind rage swinging his sword without thought which allowed me to duck under and slip in the blind spot of his sword range. I brought my arm under him placing a foot behind his right leg and flipped him. He lost his grip on his energy sword and I brought my heel across his face in a nasty kick that made blood fly against the wall. With both unconscious I was panting as I walked over to my helmet but stopped as I noticed the arbiter standing and staring at me with a smirk.

"Great! What the fuck do you want now?!" I spat with venom.

"Just admiring your handy work with the trial by combat I set for you." he said chuckling

"You're fucking kidding me right? This was a test?! If this is how you thank someone that saved your life I should have let him kill your ass you mother fucker!" I was in no mood for games and was filled with anger so hot it might have as well burnt through titanium armor.

"As you passed this test you will be placed with part of my honor guard. Starting today you are under my command human. OH... i also believe you owe me your name." He said laughing now.

I didn't even know what the hell to think about all of this, yesterday was bad but this was something else entirely. I picked my helmet up looking at it then glancing at the arbiter. I let out a sigh and simply replied "Amanda... Amanda Cruz." and waited for an order. The arbiter looked at me then nodded saying "Thel Vadam." He turned around waving for me to follow him down the hall so i followed and put my helmet on. We walked in silence for a while before we came to a stop at the sangheili mess hall and entered. Heads turned to watch me as I followed the arbiter realizing I still had blood of sangheili soldiers still on me i prepared for another fight as I bumped into the arbiter when he came to a stop. The arbiter told me to take a seat at one of the empty tables as he walked off to go do something so I did as I was ordered. I removed my helmet and started to inspect it for signs of damage as a zealot sat down in front of me flanked by two others in infiltrator armor by the looks of them.

"So human I see you passed the arbiters test and the two fools are dead I presume?" the zealot said in amusement

"No not dead but beaten and unconscious. So I figure it's much more appealing to have them live with the shame of being beaten by a human female." I laid emphasis on human female.

"You shamed not only them but their houses as well human. You would do well to fear retribution." One infiltrator said.

"Oh? It's kind of hard to fear when my race has had to live with death for over fifty years. My family has served the military for centuries and has had to live with the fear of losing loved ones every day. Besides if need be I can get rather creative in taking care of that issue personally if they wish to pursue this course of action." I said casually while shrugging to them.

"I lost a cousin on earth during the first engagement, my father on Reach, and lastly my mother was killed on one of the orbital defense platforms on earth. Death and my family are very close friends." I said not even looking up from my helmet as I tightened the helmet cam.

"Do you not have any bloodline left to carry your family legacy? Or is it just you left?" The same infiltrator asked quizzically.

"Yes. A little sister but I haven't heard from her in years. So I don't know if she's dead or alive." I said looking up to finally look at them only then realizing more sangheili had moved closer to listen.

"A hard existence your race has led. It truly is a pity that we nearly destroyed your race as a result of our ignorance." The zealot said which earned him a few nods and growls of approval.

"What doesn't kill us makes us stronger. It's part of evolution as an individual and as a species even the reverse is true for your race as it is with every other. My race however has killed more of our own throughout history before you arrived." I said as i looked down at the face plate to see my reflection showing off my hazel eyes, reddish-brown hair and tanned face.

"Wise words. But what do you feel towards my people?" the zealot said which made me look at him then around the room at each individual.

"Your asking a very sensitive topic. One I can only answer in more than one way. I cannot trust easily even if the war has ended but I know I must try. At the same time I cannot fault you for following a doctrine that has made you feel like you have purpose in your lives." I said trying to find the right words not knowing if i had succeeded

"My fellow brothers call me Vrask. These two are my blood brothers Lux and Darr." The two infiltrators nodded in affirmation.

"Amanda." I said looking up from my helmet at them which caused the three to smile in the weird way the sangheili do.

"So... which of you is Darr? And which is Lux? I asked curiously.

"I am Darr. My brother across from Vrask is Lux." the infiltrator on the left replied without hesitation.

"Amanda is the reason you are so ruthless in your fighting because your bloodline is dying out?" Vrask asked casually.

"I honestly never thought about it to be honest. All I know is that when I was growing up my mother and father agreed that it was best to put all their children through various martial arts courses growing up." I said as I leaned forward placing my arms on the table

"Are you any good with that blade? From what the arbiter has told us is that you seem to favor melee weapons more than your human firearms." Lux asked now more curious about why i choose to fight hand to hand as opposed to the average human use of ranged fighting.

"I guess it would depend on the situation to be fair. My being good with my combat knife is just due to my Martial training as a child which includes more than just this. I learned how to use Staffs, and single handed blades although most of the training I dealt with was hand to hand combat techniques." Noticing more Sangheili were flocking towards the conversation with rapt attention I knew that I wasn't going to be getting out of this conversation as easily as I had hoped.

"Maybe my brother or I could spar with you one day. I would finally relish the opportunity to find a human finally I could call an equal." Darr said almost whimsically.

"Well it's not every day an ODST gets an offer like that... Sure why the hell not. When's a good time for either of you to have this dance?" I shrugged asking thoughtfully.

"Tonight after our duties are ended. If that's fine with you?" Lux asked hesitantly.

"That seems like a good time since paperwork for my transfer of command won't happen till tomorrow. But I want Vrask first." I grinned as my comment made Vrask choke on his drink making him cough trying to clear his throat.

"Why in the gods would you want me as your opponent first?! You should know Zealots rank higher than infiltrators." Vrask said as he leaned back staring at me intently.

"Well it's not like it's to the death and I'm curious to see how well you fight since I haven't seen a zealot with your color scheme." I said smirking.

"Very well Amanda. I will spar with you but to answer your curiosity I rank as a shipmaster."

As soon as Vrask finished his statement the arbiter came back from where ever it was he headed off to and sat down with us to eat. Nothing much was really said after he sat down and their meals concluded we all stood up and walked out heading wherever our duties took us. Mine led me to stand guard outside the sangheili ambassador's office as well as the earth ambassador's office. We then walked the streets for a while listening to him talk in his native tongue with the civilians of his planet. Thankfully I was wearing my helmet because I was getting increasingly annoyed and was muttering curses to myself so my helmet kept anyone around me from hearing them. Eventually I had lost interest of what he was doing and had started up my records and played some of my music that I normally listened to while in combat since ODST recon was usually alone ahead of the regular ODST's so they were granted more leeway with how and what they did to gear and in combat situations.

**Arbiter POV**

As I and the human Amanda walked the streets I stopped and interacted with fellow Sangheili in the markets answering questions and making idle conversation. Every now and then my new guard would scan the surroundings and then go back to whatever she was preoccupied with in her helmet which I grew more curious to know what it was but was always dragged into talks with elderly or the young sangheili about political matters or being asked for war stories. By the time we made it out of the market district Amanda stopped and looked at her watch and stopped.

"Arbiter may i be excused for the evening?" she said through her helmet speakers.

"I don't see why not your duty has been concluded for some hours." I said stopping to look at her.

"Thank you sir, I will be at your keep in a few hours." She quickly saluted and turned then jogged off.

I was keenly curious to know what she was so hurried about and activated my Active Camouflage and followed from a distance. After a good bit of following her i realized she was headed to the sparring grounds of my keep and that piqued my interest quite a bit so i hurried ahead and leaped onto a building that was close enough to see what was going to transpire shortly and what surprised me was seeing two infiltrators and a shipmaster zealot waiting. A few minutes passed then I saw Amanda jogging up to meet them and exchanging greetings. She removed her helmet revealing her Shoulder length hair and the fiery eyes of a warrior who has experienced much. I made a mental note to myself to find out how much shes done in the war and recent duties before she was assigned here. My attention was brought back to the sparring area as she walked to one side removing her sidearm and unloading it then she started removing her upper body armor revealing a slender frame covered by her black body suit but didn't remove her armored gloves. I was stunned to see her and the ship master walking to the center. Both of them bowed slightly recognizing each other as an opponent. Amanda sunk into a low stance while the shipmaster dropped into the classic Sangheili sparring stance. Both stood sizing each other up for the moment then Amanda without warning dashed forward with startling speed for a normal human. The shipmaster shifted the right half of his body to strike her in an upwards motion. Amanda pivoted to spin going low and struck the shipmasters lightly armored knee then rolling away barely in time as the ship master nearly his armored left fist swinging under and up. After that they both repositioned themselves to make ready for the next move. The shipmaster grunting out in annoyance and Amanda smirking with an evil grin. She then rushed at him again and he did the same but he shifted and made to kick her but she side stepped again and grabbed his boot and propelled herself up and onto his shoulders then she swung herself side ways unbalancing the shipmaster tossing him to the ground with the momentum she gained. Amanda tried to pin the shipmaster but he threw her off easily. Amanda landed a good distance away but she had reoriented herself to roll from her shoulder onto her feet. But the shipmaster was much quicker this time and grabbed her by the neck and lifted her up and tossed her out of the arena. The ship master dropped down and helped Amanda up and they exchanged compliments by the sound of it.

An hour later she faced both the infiltrators and beat one of them but lost to the other after a long fight. I was very impressed with her resilience during all three fights. Granted they were short but quite intense for a normal human to endure. Amanda collected her belongings and put them back on as i turned to make my way back to the keep ahead of them I wanted to meet the three sangheili who she sparred with.

**Amanda POV**

After I put my armor back on and holstered my side arm Vrask, Lux, Dar, and I made our way to the Arbiters keep. I was still very winded from that hard workout and i let them talk among themselves in their native tongue. They all laughed shoved and bantered with each other which i was grateful for since it gave me time to rethink my skills in hand to hand. It was one thing to take on elite minors or a young dumb brute and another thing entirely to take on an infiltrator, zealot, or shipmaster ranked elite who had years and years of experience. I mulled the outcomes of each fight in my head and sighed out of exasperation and only thought how naive I was thinking I could handle someone on their level. By the time I came out of my thoughts we were already at the keep entrance and was showed to my quarters. I entered the room and explored it for a bit then quickly stripped out of my gear and placed it neatly in the locker. and then went over to my new bed collapsed onto it and passed out.

**Ok so i was made aware to my horror that I had forgot to capitalize a lot of things all I can say is that i'm beyond sorry for those who had to read my first chapter second will not have that same issue. I was also made painfully aware that there are other errors but this is the first time I've seriously wrote a story like this and its out of my element. So please bear with me. Like I said before if you have a character you want in the story I will try and bring them in it. Just Pm me a Bio about them :)**

**Please don't forget to comment and let me know what you think.**


	2. Unexpected Events

**Ok so its been quite a while so I figured I should give you what I currently have written if for those who have been waiting patiently. Thank you for being extremely patient I was hit with an unfortunate case of writers block but its gone now. **

**There was a request to have a character put in by someone and i agreed to so i will place them in the upcoming chapter or the one after**

ODST  
>Name Casey Ellis<br>Gender male  
>Height 6ft<br>Age 21  
>Rank corporal<br>Back ground: has a good sense of humor. Can have psychopathic episodes. When he was 5 he watched the Covenant kill his parents and his 3 year old little brother.  
>Weapons: smg, sniper rifle, assault rifle knife<br>Is friendly towards unsc personal.

**Unexpected Events**

**Amanda Pov**

It's been a few weeks since my transfer to the Arbiters security detail and it has not been boring to say the least. My first day on the job I ended up angering the Arbiters wife and almost was thrown out of a twenty floor window, then there was the unpleasant job of dealing with the Arbiters head of security on my first day of reporting for a duty assignment which had me escorting one of the daughters of the Arbiter who was near obsessed with asking me millions of questions. Needless to say when I found out i had this day to myself I roamed around the I found myself at the training grounds where they train the next generation of sangheili soldiers to prepare them to enter the planetary academy and immediately saw one of the instructors yelling at one of the children so I decided to see if I could help. As i got closer the instructor took notice and stopped the class and walked up to me.

"Greetings human. What do we owe the honor of your presence for today?" He said in a partially mocking manner.

"I was given what your people called a rest day so I went exploring and ended up here. Saw you having issues with this particular kid. Whats he doing wrong?" I asked ignoring his attitude.

"Why do you wish to know. Your race has no desire to fight hand to hand except your demons." He snorted out

"Actually I happen to be a force recon CQB hand to hand specialist. So I might be able to help provided you stop being smug with me. AND for the record im on the Arbiters personal security team." I stated as a matter of fact.

He eyed me carefully for a moment then sighed. "Very well if you really wish to know this youngling here is over confident and over reaches which I have chastised him numerous times. He does not hear reason even though i have to admit he has not lost against other younlings it will serve him no good on the battlefields in the future." He said as he shrugged non caring fashion.

"May i have a try at it?" I asked while taking off my helmet.

"Do what you wish human I was going to dismiss the whelp for the day and send him off to run errands for one of the keep staff. VORDAS! COME HERE!" He yelled out causing the kid to jump and walk over."

"Yes instructor Dahisk?" He respectfully bowed asking. As if he had done this dance plenty of times over.

"Go with the human she wishes to see your forms." He snorted out and walked back to his remaining turned to me but I was already off to an empty area of the training grounds so he made his way over quickly. Once he was standing in front of me I looked at him closely taking note of how he held himself. He was a little talker than me and he was decently built. I quickly noticed he was staring at me with contempt as if he thought of me as a lesser quality than him which made me quickly realize i needed to fix his attitude before I do anything with him. I sighed thinking to myself that this was going to be a tough nut to crack.

"Alright i see we have a problem. First let me state your stance right now is wrong. If your going to stand at attention bring your legs closer together as well as sitting up straighter. Second its clearly obvious you have problems with authority so we will have to fix that before I do anything with you. Lastly... from what I've heard you over step and use to much energy in your movements that is easily fixed." I said as i was circling him taking note he fixed his issue with standing at attention.

"Good. Very good. Your a fast learner I see. Next I'm going to have to work you to the bone so you don't have the energy to use exaggerated movements. Any questions before we begin?" I said as I stopped in front of him once more.

"What exactly do you have planned for me? And why the interest in me." He cautiously asked narrowing his eyes wary by my demeanor.

"Relax kid. Just some... Exercises to start. First give me 100 push ups, 100 crunches, then I want you to make 30 laps around the training yard." I said casually.

His eyes bulged. Clearly not understanding. "What are those? The 30 runs I understand but the first two I'm not sure what you mean." He said clearly distressed.

"Push ups mean laying on the ground and using your arms to push yourself off then bringing yourself all the way back down. I want 100 of those from you. Crunches are where you lay on your back with your legs are brought up and your feet are placed on the ground. That's when you bring your upper body up to your knees and then back down. I want 100 of those as that you know what they are get to it your burning day light." I said calmly.

He made the move to complain but then stopped noticing I wasn't going to budge on the matter so he went to start the things I told him to do.

**Dahisk Pov**

I watched the human curiously as I instructed my younglings without any hindrances since the human took my problem off my hands. To my shock she seemed to be training him but not in any sort of way I was familiar with. The female had him doing exercises. It took me a moment to understand then it hit me like a phantom. She was wearing him out so he didn't have the energy to spend on those viscous moves. To that end my respect for the human was gained as one of the other instructors came up to me.

"Lux good to see you brother." I nodded to him as i called the younglings to be dismissed for the evening.

"Good to see you as well. I see Amanda has taken the youngling under her wing as humans say." He chuckled.

"You know her?" I snorted.

"Yes she beat me in single hand combat last night. Even held her own against Dar and Vrask for a time but still lost." He said rubbing his left lower mandible.

"Surely you jest. That human couldn't possibly... Then again... I did hear a report of a human stopping an assassination attempt on the Arbiter and cleaning the floor with two minors. This is her I'm assuming?" I asked curiously.

"Yes this is the human. She knocked a few of my teeth loose during our sparring match" He said showing me that he indeed was missing a tooth and having a broken one.

"Interesting... How skilled is she? I'm assuming decently so to hold up to you three." I said suddenly thinking about some possibilities.

"I know that look brother. And yes shes quite skilled. She has learned quite a few martial styles that took us by surprise." He chuckled while patting me on the shoulder while walking off to the human.

I started wondering if there were more of her kind somewhere. Shrugging to myself I walked off to the dinning hall to get some food and to make my report on the progress of the younglings.

**Lux Pov**

I made my way to the Human Amanda to check to see how the youngling was holding up seeing he was now running the area of the training ground.  
>She had removed her upper armor showing her disturbingly slim figure in her combat suit as she stretched a bit for what i was guessing her morning training. she she still had not noticed me as I came up next to her I smirked. "Amanda it's good seeing your well today." I said making her spin around startling her.<p>

"Lux. Jesus I almost about hit you!" She half yelped out.

"Were it so easy Amanda. So why the exercises?" I chuckled out pointing to the gasping youngling.

"Oh that? Nothing major actually. Back in boot camp there were plenty like him. The easiest way to deal with attitudes like that is work them to the ground then do what you need to train without them having any energy to fight. Although I will admit its the first time I've actually done this so its going to be interesting." She said smirking.

"I was actually about to do my morning routine. But since your here would you like to be my partner for the morning?" She asked with a smile indicating she was hoping for another match.

"Hmm. What about your youngling? The instructor has to keep an eye out to make sure they follow the training." I said casually.

"Hes got 15 more laps around the courtyard and at the rate hes going he will be finished in a half hour at least. If not then maybe an hour." She said shrugging.

"Besides showing him what I have in mind for him might make him more willing to learn. Unless you don't want me to knock another tooth loose" She grinned as said it sitting down and stretching her legs.

"You got lucky. Besides I know what you like to do now so it will be far from easy to beat me again." I laughed out as I said it.

"So? Yes or no big guy? Not every day a woman gets throttled by a big strong man or in my case a sangheili." She said with a grin making me turn a whole new color of dark grey.

"You... Your... So strange... That. What?" I stammered out as she laughed at my profound lack of words.

"HAHAHA! Relax Lux I was only teasing you. I'm guessing flirting is not something your race is used to." She said smirking as she stood back up to face me.

"Sangheili female flirt also! That was not flirting... That was something else entirely!" Finally finding my words as my blushing faded as I'm sure her seeing my blushing would've caused me untold amounts of grief.

"Oh? So you prefer the flattering kind of flirting? Well I shouldn't expect any less. You like your women dainty and feminine in that case? maybe with a hint of mischievousness?" She purred out while grinning ear to ear.

"Your enjoying making me uncomfortable... Your far from what I expected." I grumbled.

"HA! And what did you expect me to be? Some straight faced no humor killing machine?" She giggled throwing a punch that made me grab her wrist gently.

"No. Nothing like that. Just did not expect this. Besides if I were to flirt I would be doing more than just offer platitudes. Many males like dainty and feminine I however prefer strong and upfront in a mate." I said as i gently released her hand chuckling as my statement made her turn a bright red indicating a blush which sent me in a fit of laughter.

"That's not fair! You sounded like that on purpose! UGH... Beat at my own game by a eight foot mountain of death." She said as she feigned innocence.

"On another topic I intended to go to the settlement and was hoping to catch either you, Dar, or Vrask in hopes of having some company showing me around." She said as she shifted to check the progress of her charge which made me chuckle in the fact I seemed to have won her little game.

"Hmm. Sure I have nothing else planned for my day. So it would be nice getting out of the keep for once seeing as I need to meed my sister and mother for lunch." I said thinking out loud.

Just then the youngling came in and collapsed to the ground making us chuckle at his state. Which indicated our time for conversing was up as it was now her time to finish his training. We both agreed to meed in a few hours at the keep entrance to journey to the settlement.

* * *

><p><span><strong>Amanda Pov<strong>

A few hours after the training I put the kid through I sent him to do his other duties and went and cleaned myself up a bit. Then made my way to the keep entrance wearing a tight black v-neck t-shirt , cargo pants and my boots to wait for Lux. The morning with the elite was certainly a high point in the day so I figured it would be interesting getting a tour from the big guy. After a few minutes passed I was leaning against the gate wall with my hands behind my head with a ear piece playing some music and humming in tune with the song while I waited. Once Lux met up with me we made our way to the Settlement and talked about each others histories in the war which mine was much less compared to his. At least we both fought on Halo the prophet of regret fled to, then there the fighting trying to contain the flood that came to earth on a damaged infected CRS Covenant light cruiser, lastly fighting on the Ark which was hell. We reached the settlement and walked to meet his mother first saying it was an important matter that needed attention. As we rounded a corner i walked face first into Vrask which put me on my ass bringing a stream of creative curses which made him turn around and helped me back up with him offering apologies.

"Damn if I knew I was gonna be put on my ass by walking into you I would've at least hoped to at least make you flinch. your a tank Vrask jesus." I grumbled.

"Ah. Good your here Lux. The Arbiter has tasked us with something that must be taken care of tactfully. But it is good you brought Amanda with you she could be of use to us." Vrask said in a lowered voice.

"Dar make sure we arnt followed were going to the Serene Truth. Once were aboard i shall notify the Arbiter we have brought Amanda to help us in our mission. He will not complain in either case since he game me the choice to take whoever." He said as he turned around to walk off.

"Whoa whoa whoa. Hold the hell up I don't even have my gear!" I said in alarm.

"Dar change of plans hurry to Amanda's quarters back in the keep. Collect her Armor and weapons. I shall send a phantom to collect you after you gather it up." Vrask said into his communicator.

"I guess I have no choice in any of this do I?" I sighed with resignation.

"No. No i suppose not." Vrask chuckled as we hurried to a phantom on the outskirts to make our way to his ship.

**Vrask Pov**

We reached my ship and Amanda had her armor delivered in short order and her reaction to the ship that was under command was amusing since I commanded the newly constructed CAS Assault Carrier with a redesigned hull. Instead of the standard to two energy projectors she was given six. Instead of the standard two plasma torpedoes she was given four. The planetary bombardment beam was removed to allow for more power distribution. Next was the new reactor system which supported two reactors to allow for easier power distribution. Then lastly the most impressive feature about my ship was instead of the one shield system she hefted not just one CAS class shield system but two allowing her to take greater punishment. There are many more improvements but those were the most impressive.

I reached the bridge and opened the mission file reading over it before deciding the course of action to take. Apparently there was a small human fleet on patrol along our boarder that had gone missing and was reported there was a small fleet of Jiralhanae or remnants of Jul'Mdama's fleet. The reports were disturbingly vague which made me wonder why exactly just one ship was being sent no matter how refined the design was. My only conclusion is that we would work in tandem with the UNSC which fouled my mood. Even though i respected a few UNSC personnel they were few in number which one of them happened to be aboard my ship. Which brought my thoughts to the human Amanda. Her rank in the UNSC was poor her skill and intuition was absurdly high and she had a shockingly large aura of authority to her. I knew the decision was going to make a few heads spin as humans say.

I activated the ship intercom and cleared my throat. "Human Amanda report to the bridge with Dar and Lux." I said and shut off the intercom. getting a few side way glances from the crew on the bridge but I paid them no mind. Some minutes passed and the three came to the with Amanda in her armor again and her helmet under her arm and all stood at attention before me waiting for me to speak.

"Human Amanda it has come under my attention from the times we have sparred within the few weeks we have known each other and for what im bringing you into on this mission im using my authority as shipmaster to promote you to the Sangheili rank as major and you will command a lance of Sangheili warriors." As I finished my sentence there was a dead silence on the bridge and then everyone on the bridge all at once amusingly shouted "WHAT?!" at the same time but most in our native tongue.

The Second in command of the ship stared at me with an aghast stare and Amanda as well as my brothers looked as if they were struck by phantoms which filled me with a small amount of mirth.

"Shipmaster! Surely you must be Jesting! This is unheard of this. This HUMAN is not as competent as you say!" My second was in a fit as I stared at him calmly.

"Amanda?" I asked.

"Yes sir?" She recomposed herself quickly enough standing solidly at attention.

"Clear a space on the bridge. Amanda you will face me to prove you are up to the new rank. Do not fail you must beat me. Am i clear?" I deadpanned clearly showing the seriousness of this fight. The air on the bridge was constricting.

"Sir. With respect for your orders I will comply but in the two weeks we have sparred I have yet to win but I will do my very best to live up to your expectations. I will not fail so do what you must and so shall I." She said putting her helmet on while getting into position Drawing her blade from her shoulder guard and getting into position. I knew this was different from her usual demeanor everyone could sense one word from her aura emanating from her and it screamed 'Lethal'

**Dar Pov**

We all sat dead silent as they circled even the Second in command watched with a smug but intent interest at the sudden change in both demeanor's. Amanda had drawn her blade indicating that she saw this as more than just a fight. My eldest brother seeing her change in the posture she was giving made him draw his energy sword. Both Lux and I looked at each other and the look he gave was all he had to do so we split apart in case we needed to intervene to keep either from killing each other. This wasn't just a fight anymore, This was a duel of honor. One of which could very well escalate into a fight to the death. Then they both charged. Amanda slid under him grabbing his left leg and pistoning off the ground onto his back swinging herself just as fast over him as he swung his sword missing her she brought a armored boot to the top of Vrasks head making him stagger back and dropping to a knee and then she tackled him to the ground but Vrask was not an idiot he grabbed her and threw her off him. She rolled onto her feet not letting up charging back into the fight, my brother doing the same. Vrask swinging low causing Amanda to go high catching her by the arm and driving her into the ground. But surprising to everyone she didn't even acknowledge the blow my brother landed as she used and arm to spin her body using her then launching herself back up kicking my brothers mandibles hard enough to cause blood to splatter to the floor and a few teeth to fall to the ground. They circled each other once more. I looked at Lux questioning him without voice. Still shook his head as we looked back. It was bad. Amanda was holding her shoulder. Still holding her knife in a death grip. They circled once more everyone knew this was the last push for Amanda. She needed to win this one but Lux and I knew even this was a very tall order for her. Vrask couldn't risk showing mercy and Amanda knew this. she needed to incapacitate him. Or force him to submit. Sangheili culture however knew that his honor would take a blow but this had to be done if he lost. And that was a big if at this point. They both charged in again. Vrask Swung his blade from below but not surprisingly Amanda was quick to side step and Swung her knife across Vrasks back knee severing tendons dropping him to his knee then she used her momentum to drive her knife into Vrasks sword arm and grabbing his neck and using her built up speed and the little remaining strength she had and shocking even my brother vrask hurled him even if it was just a couple of feet in front of her.

My brother and the bridge crew stood stunned. never had we seen a human do what we just saw. Even if Lux, Vrask and I had sparred with her the past few weeks. This was something else entirely. she had thrown a Sangheili. Thrown him a few all knew the momentum that can allow such an action but from a human? Never had this crossed our minds.

"Get a Medical team here now!" Lux yelled out causing everyone to rush to Vrask and Amanda. I rushed over to Amanda.

"Nice of you to join me Dar. But I'm afraid my shoulder is pretty banged up maybe fractured." She collapsed into my arms and passed out from the ordeal.

Lux carried Vrask with the help of two others and I carried Amanda in my arms as she slumbered. I removed her helmet and to everyone's shock she was bleeding from a large gash on her head. All sangheili knew of how easy head trauma could hurt humans in a number of ways so we hurried to the infirmary getting both of them checked out. they had done a number to each other. Vrask had a slight concussion, ripped tendons, and a broken arm from the knife of Amanda. Amanda had mild concussion, fractured shoulder and three broken ribs. Both suffering either moderate to minor blood loss. Vrask more so in the regard of blood loss but his energy sword would've killed her if it connected, thankfully it did not.

* * *

><p><span><strong>Amanda Pov<strong>

I came to with a killer headache and my vision was blurry as all hell at first. Recalling the event with the fight with Vrask filled me with regret for hurting him as I did but he told me not to fail in proving myself. So I resorted to finishing the fight with my knife. Trying to shift my body screamed in protest I knew at that moment i had broken ribs though how many was yet to be known to me. Forcing myself to sit up slowly I saw Vrask in a hover chair talking to one of the sangheili in the room so I waited for him to turn his attention to me. Ince he took notice of me he floated over to me eyeing me carefully.

"You know... If i didnt know any better that knife that pierced my arm was meant for another blow other than my arm before you threw me." He grumbled out rubbing his injured leg.

"Actually not really. Sorry what I did to you. You game me a tall order to live up to so I had to improvise." I said rubbing my head wishing the headache would disappear.

"Contrary to popular belief you did well. Even though I'm in this chair for the moment your injuries are more severe. How are you feeling?" He asked a little concerned.

"Like I went head to head with a shipmaster and nearly died. Which I may add looked as though he was trying to kill me." I hissed out in frustration knowing that was very well the case.

"Ah yes. That... Um. You have my apologies in that regard Major Amanda." he said grinning.

"You could always make it up to me by treating me to dinner." I chuckled and half groaned gripping my ribs.

"If that is your wish. Then so be it. But first You must go meet your lance. they have been expecting you for the past three days. And to my surprise they wish to meet you." He said smirking.

"Now go. As our commander prepare your lance. Even though your still on a medical leave of light work only you still must patrol the ship with your lance." He finally said with a serious voice.

I got up and made my way to the crew quarters to meet the squad I was to command. I still couldn't believe I was going to be commanding a squad of sangheili. This whole deal of me being stationed on shangheilios has been one curve ball after another. Though not all of them bad this one I just couldn't even wrap my head around. Dar and Lux took it upon themselves to mark my shoulder guards and helmet with the color of a major. No sooner had my thoughts had come to the conclusion I was becoming more and more integrated member to the sangheili people than the UNSC. As far fetched as that sounded it felt that was the case. Technically since i was one of the Arbiters personal guard I had sufficient rank to command a lance but to have actually gained a proper rank it felt to surreal. And technically the alliance between the Sangheili and UNSC the ranks were on par with one another and a shipmaster was technically the equivalent of a general and had the authority to do such a promotion and depending on the situation it dawned on me that i may have to command more than one lance if there was the need. My head was spinning at the implications of the whole deal. I realized quickly that I was standing dumbly in front of the legion hall and i prepared myself for what would happen. I sighed to myself in resignation to my new situations. It was an ODST's duty to adapt to any situation no matter what it was.

"You know what fuck it lets just get this over with." I said to myself and putting my helmet on and entered the large room.

**AND thats the end of this chapter! Hope it shocked you with what happened. And that this was a good cliff hanger :) dont forget to leave a review and if you want drop a character and i will get back to you with any questions or concerns you have. chapter 3 will be up within the next week or so :)**


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